In Texas I met so many people doing inspiring work that it’s impossible to cover them all, but I wanted to share just a few highlights with you:

My first stop was Denton, where I met with Frack Free Denton, the people who passed the first fracking ban in Texas. Instead of listening to establishment politicians who told them they were powerless, these brave organizers took action to defend their community from the pollution and disease that fracking brings.

In Houston, I met with Juan Parras of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Service (TEJAS) for a tour of Houston’s East End, the predominantly working class, Latino and African-American side of town that borders the Houston Ship Channel. Here, oil refineries spew toxic smoke across the street from houses and schools. Now Juan and TEJAS are helping local oil workers build community support for their ongoing strike.

I walked the picket lines with striking USW workers at two oil refineries. The oil corporations are taking away workers’ benefits while refusing to fix unsafe working conditions. The workers want Big Oil to treat them fairly and deal with safety hazards at the refineries. Juan and TEJAS agree that if the oil workers aren’t safe on the job, then their entire communities are at risk. Old dividing lines between workers and environmentalists are quickly disappearing.

I spoke with many students at Texas A&M University and Kingwood College. They were overjoyed to hear my ideas about tuition-free higher education and abolishing student debt. And I was delighted to hear their ideas and feel their passion for building a better world.

My trip ended in the border city of Laredo, where I met with local human rights groups working with faith communities to provide clothing, shelter, and other aid to Latin American refugees who cross the border, many of them children fleeing violence and poverty.

We held a press conference at the Rio Grande, where I spoke about the need for a path to citizenship for immigrants, and an end to misguided U.S. policies, like NAFTA and the drug war, that have destabilized Mexico and Central America and caused so many to flee their homes.

Everywhere I went, I met people who were frustrated at the way the political establishment is ignoring their struggles in order to serve the wealthy and well-connected. People have no confidence in the establishment parties and they are ready to support a Green campaign that would bring their voices into the 2016 election. We have been disempowered, but we have the power to turn things around simply by showing our independence in the voting booth. Truly, it is in our hands.

Your support so far has been extremely encouraging. Anything you can contribute will bring us closer to the day when we can launch a nationwide presidential campaign that will restore power to the people.
Upward Together!

The Green Party opposes proposed plans to provide Ukraine’s armed forces military aid to fight rebels who are allegedly receiving assistance from Russia and urges President Obama to reject the advice of warhawk advisors and Congressmembers.

“Washington has used the people of Ukraine as chess pieces in a bid to strengthen NATO and isolate Russia politically, militarily, and economically, taking advantage of Russia’s vulnerability in the wake of sanctions and Saudi Arabia’s reduction of oil prices. Instead of seeking peace, the U.S. is aggravating tensions, risking a face-off with Russia that could spark a proxy war or even a global conflict. This game isn’t about self-defense for the U.S., it’s about expanding the power of NATO and enforcing the U.S.’s superpower status,” saidStarlene Rankin, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States.

Green Party leaders strongly criticized comments by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R.-SC) and U.S. Air Force general Philip Breedlove directed at German Chancellor Angela Merkelduring last week’s Munich Conference. Chancellor Merkel, who favors a diplomatic solution, was in Washington last week to meet with President Obama.

“The insistence on military escalation by Sen. Graham and other warhawks in Munich indicate that the neocon ideology that led the U.S. into a pointless invasion of Iraq has become permanent foreign policy. A more constructive policy would maintain diplomacy, emphasize cooperation with Russia, and avoid the kinds of threats that put President Putin on the defense,” saidDarryl! L.C. Moch, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States.

February 16, 2015, Houston— Dr. Jill Stein, who represented the Green Party of the United States in 2012 as the party’s presidential candidate and who recently declared an exploratory bid for 2016, will make several appearances in Denton and Houston, Texas later this month.

She will be a featured speaker at the South by Southwest Ecosocialist Conference, held at Wooten Hall on the campus of the University of North Texas in Denton, beginning Friday, February 20 and continuing through Sunday, February 22. Stein will be speaking to the conference on Saturday evening and Sunday morning, according to the conference’s agenda.

On Monday, February 23, Stein will be the guest speaker at the monthly meeting of the Harris County Green Party, at 6:45 pm at Trinity Episcopal Church, 1015 Holman, in Houston. There will be media availability as well as Q&A from all members and guests at the conclusion of her remarks.

On Tuesday, February 24, Stein plans a visit to the picket lines of striking United Steelworkers at Houston-area refineries. She will also speak that evening at Lone Star College-Kingwood, with other appearances still to be finalized. There will be limited media availability at these events with the exception of her speech at LSC-Kingwood.

For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact Laura Palmer at 832-746-9067.

Twelve years ago, America’s leading advocate of occupational health and environmental safety succumbed to pancreatic cancer.

In the U.S., where the influence of organized labor has long been contracting, the death of a former trade union official is often little noted. Yet Tony Mazzocchi was no ordinary labor leader. His passing from the scene, at age 76, was widely recognized and correctly mourned as a great loss for the entire union movement.

At a Press Conference this morning, Dr. Jill Stein told the assembled media, guests, and a live TV audience tuning into C-Span that she is “testing the waters” and forming an exploratory committee to seek the Green Party nomination for President of the United States. More information about the exploratory committee can be found at Jill2016.com.

In her prepared remarks, Stein noted that the “demand for deep change has grown to a fevered pitch. Workers are fighting for living wages and the right to a union. Students are demanding an end to college debt that’s crippled a generation. Young people are leading the courageous Black Lives Matter movement to end police militarization and racist violence,” she said. “Momentum is growing against abusive high stakes testing that forces poor kids down the deadly school to prison pipeline. The fight is building against predatory mass incarceration. Hard-working immigrants are standing up for a humane path to citizenship, not simply a 3-year deferral of deportation. Frontline and Indigenous communities are leading the resistance to toxic fossil fuels that threaten to disrupt civilization as we know it in our lifetime.”

The New York Times reported Tuesday that the Obama administration is considering sending more weapons to Ukraine — $3 billion worth. The Times reports: “Secretary of State John Kerry, who plans to visit Kiev on Thursday [Feb. 5], is open to new discussions about providing lethal assistance, as is Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, officials said.”

July 23-26, 2015 in St Louis: Representatives of the Progressive Party of Missouri (GPUS affiliate) are excited to serve as hosts of the GPUS Annual National Meeting July 23-26, 2015. Meetings and housing will be at University of Missouri St. Louis (UMSL).